Awakening The Buddha Within - Lama Surya Das

last SG · 2006-03-15T18:44:48+00:00

Hi Paperflower, thanks for sharing with us much valuable and wonderful teachings

zacken99 SG

Originally posted by paperflower:
[b]what are the contents of meditation? you, your life and your world.

you don't have to go to Tibet or Nepal to find something to meditate on.

as the Zen master Dogen once wrote:

to study the Buddha's way is to study the self;
to study the self is to transcend the self.
to transcend the self is to be enlightened by all things.
to be enlightened by all things is to remove the barrier between self and others.

[/b]

wan fa jie kong... yi qie you xin..

paperflower SG

yeah....

paperflower SG

"insiders" are those who look inward for what they are seeking and are not seeking refuge in anything that can be found externally; they are looking for the kind of existential meaning that can only be found within.

through this 6th step on the Nobel Eight-Fold Path, we become "insiders", committed to doing the genuine inner work - with energy, discernment and love.

it is interesting that Right Effort is considered part of meditation training (samadhi). it reminds us that meditation is dynamic not passive. it tells us that Right Effort really means spiritual effort. we are working to elevate ourselves, trying to develop more wholesome mind states while gently striving to go deeper and live more fully.

through this effort we are opening and awakening our hearts and minds........

paperflower SG

"the unexamined life is not worth living."

it takes sincere spiritual effort to examine our lives and work at cultivating ourselves.

through introspection, prayer and contemplation - mindfulness and awareness practices - we utilise the timeless, tired and true, effective inner science of spiritual awakening and transformation.

this is how Bodhisattvas - past, present and future - do their productive Dharma farming, bringing forth the beautiful flowers for the entire world to enjoy.

paperflower SG

Effort And Inspiration Drive The Spiritual Path

effort is defined and expressed in so many different ways : exertion, perseverence, courage, self-discipline, diligence, consistency, patience - the words seem almost endless.

because we all have different spiritual paths, we are each going to be called upon to exert different kinds and degrees of effort. what looks easy for one person is difficult for another.

and since we have all been conditioned in different ways, our senses, propensities and personal histories pull us each into different spiritual arenas. it is a karmic principle that we usually go with what we know; it takes effort to change our patterns.

paperflower SG

Effort And Meditation

we can develop an awareness of ourselves and the world in an infinite variety of ways. all of them take effort. who can deny that it takes courage to examine our thoughts and behaviour?

it's not easy to admit when we act from pride, jealousy or ill will instead of honouring our Buddha-nature. who has the courage and the spiritual zeal to face all the facts about ourselves?

paperflower SG

in Buddhist practice, the effort to transform and awaken is connected to meditation which begins with watching the breath.

this frequently confuses people -
what, they want to know, does inner growth and change have to do with breathing? what does the mind have to do with breath? what does watching the breath have to do with spiritual transformation?

we start with breathing because it is a basic physical process that we all share. etymologically, the roots of the word breath and spirit are the same. breathing is our common connection to life itself.

this is fundamental and tangible.

watching the breath is the most basic centering and grounding excercise, one that we can practice no matter where we are. inhale. exhale. it's calming. it's quieting.... relax..... release...... let go.... at ease....

putting effort into observing the breath causes us to slow down, to become more reflective, more contemplative.

paperflower SG

what Buddhism offers seekers are the tried and true techniques of meditation, passed down by centuries of experienced practitioners and illumined masters who understood how our inner lives determine our life experiences.

meditation has been used by millions of people over thousands of years to transcend human limitations, gain self-realization and experience the divine.

in practical terms, this means developing intellectually and emotionally to the point where we are balanced and in harmony with ourselves, capable of grappling with life's deepest issues.

meditation is essentially a way of life. that's why it is so intrinsically connected to spiritual effort.

paperflower SG

it requires effort to cultivate awareness through attention training. the meditative way doesn't require that we join or reject any particular faith, sect or religion. the sole incentive to continue meditation is the confidence and inner conviction that develops through one's own authentic experience.

meditation is not merely a program of mental gymnastics.

in the art of meditation, simplicity is the key: the simple necessity of unburdening oneself of all excess baggage and turning the searchlight inward.

for everything is available within our own intangible spiritual core.

paperflower SG

the Buddha himself outlined what he described as Four Great Efforts that, together, form the most effective way of undertaking the wisdom work.

Four Great Efforts

1) the effort to avoid any new unwholesome, negative thoughts or actions.

2) the effort to overcome any existing unwholesome thoughts or actions.

3) the effort to develop only good and wholesome thoughts and lead an enlightened life.

4) the effort to maintain the goodness that already exists.

paperflower SG

we are conditioned to think about effort as goal-oriented striving, filled with hard work and sweat. it's important to remember that when we talk about Right Effort or Spiritual Effort in the context of Dharma, we are describing a perfectly skillful balance of endurance, energy, enthusiasm, grace and dignity.

images of Right Effort include the majestic eagle effortlessly soaring above his mountain aerie or the stately swan gliding among the lily pads without making a ripple to disturb the pond's tranquility.

paperflower SG

we all have instant-coffee mind today: what we want, we want now. just add hot water and it's ready......

but in the spiritual dimension, however urgently you may feel the need to progress - hasten slowly and you will soon arrive.

pulling the flowers with your hands everyday does not help them grow more and may even harm their natural blossoming process. on the other hand, skillful nurturing with the right combination of water, air, sunlight and fertilizer can maximise their innate growth potential.

this wise gardening method is not unlike the appropriate effort that is just right for individual spiritual growth and personal development.

paperflower SG

watch yourselves, don't let your minds be sucked out of you by your senses. don't lose your mind everytime you smell, see or touch something. maintain present awareness, rest centered in essential natural mind and appreciate everything equally."

- Lama Gendun Rinpoche

paperflower SG

we all have purity of heart. realise the Buddha-nature in every moment, the clear light shining in every moment. reflect on a time when you felt joy and unconditional love - even if only for a few seconds.

can you return to this feeling and carry it with you?

as Chogyam Trungpa once said, "we are far more Buddha-like than we know."

paperflower SG

a friend has a problem. you show generosity of spirit by listening and supporting. who is doing whom a favour?

as an example of our interconnectedness, the Dalai Lama points out that when anyone presents you with the opportunity to embody one of the Six Perfections, you are the one who is actually receiving help on the path to Buddhahood.

remember this the next time someone tries your patience to the limit. perhaps then even an adversary can become your best teacher.

reflect on what it means to be a Bodhisattva, a spiritual warrior; reflect on what it means to lead an enlightened life.

Bodhisattvas practice the Six Paramitas or Perfections - six transcendental virtues which is called the Six Principles of Enlightened Living:-

Generosity - giving, yielding, boundless, unconditional love - open hands, open mind, open heart.

Virtue - ethics, honesty, morality, integrity, helping others.

Patience - tolerance, forebearance, acceptance, forgiveness.

Effort - energy, diligence, courage, enthusiasm, endurance.

Meditation - concentration, focus, self-inquiry and reflection, presence of mind, mindfulness.

Wisdom - discernment, sagacity, sanity, centeredness, understanding.

paperflower SG

what's past is past. we create new karma by what we do from this point forward. here and now is the turning point upon which our present and future existence revolves.

now is the border between samsara and nirvana.

paperflower SG

Gentle Ananda's Awakening

a Buddhist story about spiritual effort involves Buddha's devoted disciple, Ananda. by the time Buddha became ill and died, he had been teaching for forty-five years and many of his disciples had become enlightened. one who had not was Buddha's ever-present attendant, Ananda. this might be considered peculiar because of all the disciples, Ananda had heard every word that the Buddha taught and memorised them all.

But Ananda, who had the kind of demanding daily schedule many of us can identify with, had been so busy accompanying the Buddha wherever he went and assisting the sangha members that there had been little time for his own solitary meditation practice.

several months after the Buddha's death, there was a reason why it suddenly became imperative for Ananda to become enlightened. the First Council of Buddhist Arhants was to take place in order to recite and codify all the teachings spoken by the Buddha. Ananda was essential to this meeting because he more than anyone else would be able to speak and verify the sutras. however because he wasn't enlightened, he wasn't qualified to attend.

Ananda did the only thing he could do under the circumstances: almost as if he was cramming for exams, he went into retreat - a meditation marathon - striving round the clock for enlightenment. finally it was the morning of the day before the First Council meeting and Ananda was still meditating.

then midnight, 2am, 3am, on the day of the meeting and Ananda was still striving for enlightenment, sitting in his small monastic cell. at 3.45am, 15 minutes before the 4am wake-up call on the very day of the meeting, Ananda finallly just gave up and thought, "well, that's that. i am not an arhant."

exhausted, he began to tip over from meditation into a sleeping position. Ananda stopped trying to be something he wasn't; and then before he hit the pillow, in an instant he was a liberated arhant - totally awake. Ananda became enlightened finally by letting go, simply stopping and seeing things just as they are.

it was the end of the struggle. no more trying to become an Arhant and Ananda became an arhant. in surrendering and giving up, Ananda got what he was looking for. by being just who he was, Ananda woke up.

Ananda had behind him a lifetime of pure effort and virtuous dedication, personally assisting the Buddha. his selfless personal service, in itself, didn't bring him to enlightenment; neither did round-the-clock meditation.

without his service or the meditation, he would not have accomplished his goal. yet it was in letting go and surrendering to effortlessness that he finally reached enlightenment.

as a Japanese Zen master recently said during an intensive meditation retreat known as a sesshin, "the perfect way is without difficulty. strive hard. we are all perfect and yet we can perfect ourselves endlessly."

paperflower SG

the balance between effort and effortlessness is the essence of Impeccable Effort and self-mastery. this is true whether we are striving to cultivate a spiritual life, a relationship, a work project or the most indispensible art form of all: the art of living.

the practice of Dzogchen is often described as beyond effort - not something to do but a way of being. the emphasis in Dzogchen is on "what is", the natural mind, a state that is beyond concepts such as effort or non-effort.

we cannot live with our heads in the clouds without keeping our feet firmly here on the ground. no matter how deep our philosophy, our view, our understanding is, we still have to walk our talk and practice what we preach.

Dzogchen practitioners come to recognise that it is not enough to just meditate a little each day; they learn to integrate meditation with every moment of everyday.

applying our view into action every minute is our meditation practice, which reaches far beyond the confines of the meditation seat or the explicitly religious setting.

paperflower SG

working out the contradiction between effort and effortlessness - hard work and simple surrender - helps us become more energetic, steadfast, patient and persevering. it also helps us soften up through the graceful complementary virtues of yielding acceptance and heartfelt gratitude for whatever comes our way. in short, because Right Effort is spiritual effort, it implies being able to just let go, at the right time and in the right way, simply do what must be done.

paperflower SG

here are some forms of clinging to renounce:

clinging to the ego
clinging to narrow-minded opinions
clinging to the pleasure/pain principle
clinging to empty rites and rituals
clinging to the limited, short-sighted view that sees only this world and this life

the Buddha points out that resistance and clinging is a conditioned, learned response. clinging is superficial, not essential.

there are antidotes to suffering, stress and anxiety: we find them by resisting less, grasping less and identifying with things less. nothing is half as important as we usually think it is.

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